1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to an electronic imaging camera system and image receiving and storing apparatus for use therewith and, more particularly, to an electronic imaging camera system including an image receiving and storing device embodying a selectively addressable stimulable phosphor.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Electronic imaging cameras for recording high quality still images are now well known in the art. In order to provide photographic quality reproductions, such still image electronic cameras require a high resolution image sensing array comprising a substantially higher number of pixels that is required for a standard home television image. This high resolution leads to data transfer problems particularly since the transfer of photographic image data to be stored on a digital recording medium cannot be practically completed in a standard television frame of 1/30th of a second. The high number of image sensing pixels required to make a photographic quality still print imposes additional memory requirements which are traditionally satisfied by buffer memories substantially increasing the cost, size and power consumption of the electronic camera.
A number of image sensing pixels generally required for an electronic camera to produce a photographic quality still print is in excess of 1,000,000 pixel sensing areas. Without the use of large and costly frame buffer memories this amount of data cannot be quickly transferred from the high resolution image sensing array for storage on a magnetic tape or disk. Slow data transfer rates for each image might make it difficult or impossible to record succeeding still images in rapid succession.
Therefore, it is a primary object of this invention to provide an electronic imaging camera system in which high resolution still images may be captured in rapid succession and temporarily stored in an image receiving and storing device prior to transfer to a magnetic storage medium at relatively slow data rates.
Other objects of the invention will, in part, be obvious and will, in part, appear hereinafter. The invention accordingly comprises the mechanism and system possessing the construction, combination of elements and arrangement of parts which are exemplified in the following detailed disclosure.